A new member of Magnum, Cristina Garcia Rodero
I tried to photograph the mysterious, true and magical soul of popular Spain in all its passion, love, humor, tenderness, rage, pain, in all its truth; and the fullest and most intense moments in the lives of these characters as simple as they are irresistible, with all their inner strength, as a personal challenge that gave me strength and understanding and in which I invested all my heart. – Cristina Garcia Rodero
Few days ago, Cristina Garcia Rodero, who was associated with Magnum since 2005, was voted to be accepted as a full member of the prestigious agency. Cristina Garcia Rodero becomes the first Spaniard to be part of the agency. Being originally from Spain myself, it is always a surprise to me that despite the very large artistic history in Spain, where master painters and artists are recognized worldwide (think on Salvador Dalí, think on Pablo Picasso, think on Joan Miró, etc), international success and recognition in photography has been quite limited. This historical baggage makes even more significant the recent recognition of Cristina. Take a look to her work at the Magnum website.
Biography - Cristina García Rodero was born in Puertollano, Spain. She studied painting at the School of Fine Arts at the University of Madrid,before taking up photography. She then qualified as a teacher and worked full-time in education. For the next 16 years, she also dedicated her time to researching and photographing popular and traditional festivities – religious and pagan – principally in Spain but also across Mediterranean Europe. This project culminated in her book España Oculta published in 1989, which won the «Book of the Year Award» at the Arles Festival of Photography. The same year, García Rodero also won the prestigious W. Eugene Smith Foundation Prize. The documentary and ethnological value of her work is considerable, but the esthetic quality of her photography makes it more than a simple visual record. In recent years, García Rodero has traveled around the world in search of other cultures with particular traditions. Over a period of four years, she went several times to Haiti, where she has documented voodoo rituals, producing a series of expressive portraits and moving scenes flanked by engaging documentary observations. Rituals in Haiti was shown for the first time in the 2001 Venice Biennale. Cristina García Rodero has received many prizes, including the Premio Nacional de Fotografía in 1996 in Spain. Her work has been widely published and exhibited internationally. She has published several books and has been a member of the agency Vu for more than 15 years. Garcia Rodero joined Magnum in 2005.
Even though on her statement refers to her Spanish images, unfortunately on the Magnum website, the majority of photos are from her Haiti projects. Not that are bad, but I would like to see more of her work, specially in conjunction to Spain. Any idea where on the net can see more of her work?